High School: A Progressive Transition To Insanity

Christian Baumgarth
Economos
AP English Language
30 October 2012

          Oh the glorious days of freshman year! We had just finished middle school and we were beginning the transition into a new stage of our lives. Most of us did not know what to expect. I, personally, went into freshman year with a good work ethic expecting to be up until the late hours of the night working on homework. Boy was I wrong! Freshman year, I had maybe an hour to an hour and a half maximum of homework every night. I was keeping fairly good grades and school came very easy to me. I thought to myself that his whole high school thing would be easier than I expected. Then came sophomore year, or as I like to call it, a reality check. I realized that most of the classes I was taking would require a lot more effort than I was accustomed to putting into schoolwork. The amount of homework that I had each night shook me, but it did not break me. This is the amount of homework that I had expected to have coming into freshman year, so I was prepared for this. I had roughly a little over two hours each night, which was still very manageable for me and I continued to achieve high standards in my schoolwork. However, what I didn't expect was just over the horizon.

         Junior year has arrived and the rigor of my classes has stepped up a notch. I now have two AP classes plus two honors classes to think about. I tried to prepare myself coming into this year knowing that the amount of homework I would have each night would increase, but I did not expect an increase of this magnitude. On an average night, I am now spending about three and a half to four hours on homework. Most people start to go insane junior year due to the amount of work required, but I was determined not to be one of those people. This new schedule has forced me to adapt and I am very lucky that I did this quickly before I got overwhelmed. I have developed a schedule that works for me and I am able to get all my work done. The best part is that I have still been able to keep the good grade that I have been getting since freshman year. I hope that my schedule will continue to work for me for the rest of the school year. As I wrap up my blog, I enter my fifth hour of homework tonight. Thank goodness that this is the last thing I have to do.